Timeline of History

Clement IV is elected pope. As pope, Clement IV will have a chance to end the Great Schism between Eastern and Western Christianity because Emperor Michael Palaeologus expresses willingness to reunify the Western and Eastern churches and to accept papal supremacy.

Pope Clement IV, though, will demand groveling submission, a price too high to pay and so reunification won't happen. Clement may be influenced by the desire of Charles of Anjou to take Constantinople by force and make it a Latin Christian city. Clement will reinforce papal authority by issuing the papal bull Licet ecclesiasrum declaring that all benefices are papal appointments.

A benefice is an ecclesiastical office which comes with the authoirty to collect money to support the goals of that office. In this way the power and influence of local secular rulers over Church leaders could be curtailed.